Harvest Moon
by AsherRose
Summary: Bella should be happy, now that her murder is avenged and she has crossed over. But she still remembers Edward, and the love they had on Earth. So when she is offered the chance to return to Earth, she accepts. But there is stil danger for her..
1. Chapter 1

**Hey, guys! It's been quite a while, hasn't? You've probably all forgotten about my story by now, I bet. I know I've been taking forever, but I wanted to publish this first chapter in honor of my last day of school (June 8). But I am getting ahead on the writing, so the wait for the first few chapters shouldn't be too long.**

**But back to the story. I thought about putting in a summary of where we last left off Bella and Edward, but then I decided not to. For those of you who picked this up without reading the last story, too bad!! Any moron can see this is sequel! Read the first part (_Haunted Midnight_), and get with the program! ; P**

**P.S. This is written in Bella's Point of View. **

I floated higher. I screamed louder, but Edward could not hear me. It occurred to me that if I wasn't terrified, the process might have felt almost pleasant. The space that used to be my body was fuzzy, and warm. I had forgotten what it felt like to be really, truly warm. Touching Edward, or as close to touching as a ghost ever was, was the nearest I had come to feeling warm in too many years.

But now that I was being torn away from Edward. I had never expected to meet someone I cared for, like the Cullens. Even alive, I hadn't actually thought I would ever someone I would love, like Edward. The irony was almost a physical pain. After so many years, I was finally getting my wish. The problem was that I didn't want it anymore. I had day dreamed about being..

How did one describe this? It was my lack of words that reminded me that I didn't actually know for sure where I was going, or what would happen to me. This I didn't want to think about.

I glanced down. I had risen higher, and now Edward was just barely in my sight. I strained my eyes through the blackness surrounding me, and as he drifted away from me miles below, I whispered, "I love you." It would be the last time I ever said it.

So what now? I could only wait. I was scared now. I couldn't help feeling that without him, this was ten times more frightening. I did not scream again, only watched and waited. There was no point in screaming. It give me a few pathetic scraps of comfort, that at least I wasn't screeching in fright. I kept my fear locked tightly inside of me, the way I had for centuries.

I felt the change before I saw it. The air felt harder, like jelly. It was more like I was swimming, rather than floating. It seemed like an iron band was wrapped around my lungs. With every breath, it felt like a giant fist clenched tighter and tighter, constricting my breathing and making me pant. Thinking back on it, I realized that this doesn't actually make much sense, because I am a ghost, and I don't need to breathe.

Above me, I saw a darkness so absolute it stung my eyes, like the opposite of a very bright light. I shielded my face, squinting, straining my eyes as I tried to see past the barrier. It caught me, like a net. I felt like a fly caught on flypaper. I clawed at the barrier, and I was shocked as I felt some kind of material. Confused, I batted at it, and heard a slight tearing sound. I struggled harder, feeling excited. Another tear, louder than before. I scratched desperately. Anything would be better than this caged feeling.

With a loud rip, the fabric-ish thing gave way, and I rocketed upwards.

I was no longer alone now. Globes of soft white light floated around me. A few were floating lower than the rest of us. They were darker in color, and one was nearly black. On the other hand, a few globes floated higher than the others. I noticed one particular globe. It shone like a star, enchantingly beautiful.

I guessed that these "globes", were souls like me. Most of them were a muted glow, except for the few that floated above us. I supposed that these souls had been especially kind as living people. That was why they were so beautiful. And the ones below us, the black, repellent ones… I shuddered.

I tried to look at myself, to see where I was grouped. I couldn't see myself, but I seemed to fall into the majority of souls; average. Definitely not anywhere close to evil, but hardly pure. That was a comfort to me. Most people were basically good. Only a few were bad.

My surroundings began to change again. Above me, the "sky" (or whatever it was), began to lighten. I heard a tremendous crack, and I looked down. Below, the sky began to split into pieces. A crevice opened, full of terrifying black. The dark souls fell, and the rest of us rose into that clichéd white light.

My heart felt like it was caked in concrete, and weighing me down. How could I exist without Edward?

**There. If this chapter is mega-short when you read it, forgive me. It was a decent size on Microsoft Word. This chapter was dangerous to write, as I am supposed to be writing a Punishment Essay for back talking to my mom. Shh, don't tell! Plus, school ends on Monday, June 8th****. So hip-hip-hooray for Summer!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Yeah! Summer vacation! Woo-hoo! Back to the story!**

The other souls were gone I was alone. Thick, white mist covered everything. I saw only a blank white cloud. It wasn't cold, or wet, though. Cold and wet would have been better than the nothing I felt now. I couldn't really _feel_ anything.

I looked down, and saw my own two hands. My body

I took a step for ward and felt a pile of mist sank, sponge-like, under my foot.

Up a head, I noticed a clearing in the mist. I started to make my way forward, half-swimming through the cloud. I felt hopeful as I neared the clearing. When I saw what it was, I cried out in pain.

At first, it appeared to be a round hole, leading back to Earth. But when I touched it, I felt a clear barrier of something that felt like glass. My arms and legs gave out, and I fell to the ground.

I curled into a miserable ball of self-pity. Waves of mist rolled in, covering me entirely.

I was grateful.

******************************************************************************************

Time passes. I can feel it, sort of. My body is aware, even if my mind is not. Sometimes I can feel the presence of other souls, or spirits. They don't speak to me. Most avoid me. Some watch me, never coming within a few feet. I can feel their curiosity, and sometimes fear.

I am toxic, something contagious to be avoided.

They don't know what I am. I don't know either. When they are not near me, they are happy. I guess I missed the introduction while I lay here. At times when I am not totally overwhelmed by grief, enough for other emotions, I think about forcing myself to stand, and figure out what is going on. Then pain swells up like a tsunami and drags me away. After that I am to busy fighting drowning to think.

Besides, I don't think I could move if I tried. Maybe after being unused for so long, my bones and muscles would melt away. I could become part of the cloud, and my grief would be obliterated once and for all. I wouldn't have to think, only exist.

It is a comforting thought.

******************************************************************************************

More time goes by. A loud noise from somewhere in the mist drags me out of my coma. I don't open my eyes, don't think, don't move.

Whatever they are doing, it will pass soon. Occasionally, I hear disturbances such as this. They don't last that long.

But this one is persistent. I hear it again, and this time I hear a female voice. "Hey! Come here! I want to talk to you!"

For a moment I am stunned and confused. It took me a minute to remember what a human voice sounded like. Then I was annoyed. Who was this girl? Couldn't she see that I was resting. She and her stupid friend should go fall off a cliff.

I heard it again, impatient, snapping, "What is you _problem_?" It was closer now. Just go away, I thought, irritated.

Then a hand grabbed my shoulder, and shook it roughly. "Hello! Are you retarded, or something?" No. She couldn't be talking to me. But she was.

"Look, chick," she snarled. "I am getting seriously pissed off here. Stop impersonating a rock, and _get up._" What was she doing? I didn't want to move, I didn't want to think. I wanted to disappear, to not exist.

But slowly, impossibly, I raised my head and opened my eyes. I opened my mouth to hiss at her to go away, but the words evaporated when I saw her face.

The girl (she was about my age) was stunningly, devastatingly beautiful. I hadn't thought it was possible for anyone to be as beautiful as Edward's (a bloody knife stabbed my heart) lovely sister Rosalie, but this girl was her match.

She was tall and willowy, with smooth, flawless dark skin. Her black hair was waist length, windswept. She had high, regal-looking cheekbones, and her eyes.. They were beyond words. They drew my attention instantly. They were almost glowing. Maybe it was an illusion, but I thought they were like black tunnels. And was that.. I thought I could see the faintest glimmer of gold at the bottom. I sat up trying to see her eyes better.

But she jerked backwards, and growled, "Moron. Are you _trying _to get your brain fried? 'Cause that's what'll happen if you stare to long."

I was confused, but I thought that maybe it was best to leave it alone. She didn't seem like the joking type. "Who are you?" I asked. The words felt strange as they left my lips.

She scowled, like I had offended her. "Xemalloryana."

"Uh, Xemol-what?"

She hissed something that sound suspiciously like, "Why do I bother?" Then, "_Mallory_"

For a minute, I was thrown off. "Um, okay, what do you want, Mallory?"

She snorted. "I was sent to make sure you're not acting like a brain-dead slug when she gets here."

I stared. "Who is _she_?"

_Mallory_ smiled smugly. "You'll see, won't you?"

**There. Please review?**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello! Sorry I haven't updated, but I've been very busy reading **_**The Lord of the Rings**_** by J.R.R. Tolkien. It is SO good! Has anyone else read this book? I love it! **

**BittenByTwilight333-Thank you for reviewing! Don't worry, I'm crazy, too! Besides, we crazy people are more fun at parties! About your question, I hope it will be answered in the chapter, if not this one. I would have put in the summary, but I ran out of characters.**

I called Mallory a few not-so-nice names that Emmett had taught me in my head. I was starting to seriously dislike her. I could definitely do without her snide comments. I was _not_ a brain dead slug.

Thinking of her last comment, I wondered who _she _was. And _where _she was, too. Mallory paced back and forth impatiently, muttering now and again. My respect for the nameless woman grew along with Mallory's temper. She must be courageous to upset the volatile and rather violent-seeming Mallory.

At last, a good ten minutes after Mallory first disturbed me (if time even applied here), I saw a form emerging from the mist. Or rather, Mallory saw it, and snarled, "Finally."

She was not what I expected. I don't what I did expect to emerge dramatically from the mist, but it was not this ordinary and commonplace woman. She looked like anyone I might see driving down the street at home.

She was middle-aged, maybe in the range of thirty to forty years old. Her auburn hair was curled and pinned into a practical bun, and her eyes were pale green. She wore a forest green suit that looked suspiciously like the designer clothes that Alice and Rose were so very fond of, and her dark brows and mouth were edged by frown lines. A sharp nose and grim mouth with the corners slightly pulled down made up the rest of her face.

I was not sure what to make of her. 'Pretty' was not a word that came to mind when I looked at her, though I knew she was. Her face was to sharp and harsh to be pretty. Everything about her was businesslike, from her hair to her shoes, to her brisk way she walked up and shook my hand. I almost expected her to be carrying a briefcase like the realtors that sometimes visited my house. Even so, her face was familiar, and I was sure that I had never met her before.

"Where _were _you?" demanded Mallory. The woman deliberately ignored her, as she walked up to me, and shook my hand. "Elizabeth Masen," she introduced herself. Her voice like the rest of her, was businesslike. She paused, waiting for a response. I was pretty sure there was something I was supposed to say next, but I was tongue-tied and confused. The name Masen rang a faint bell in my head, though. Were had I heard it?

She released my hand from a stone grip, and said, "Some unanticipated complications came up downstairs, and I was delayed because I was needed sort things out. It was a very tedious affair." I stared. Each word was carefully pronounced, making her speech short and clipped with no music to it. I wondered where 'downstairs' was. I could see very clearly, though, that whoever and whatever these people were, Elizabeth Masen was most definitely in charge of Mallory.

There was a steely glint in her eyes that said plainly "Do as I say." It reminded me distinctly of the governesses that had taken care of me as a child. Everything about her reminded me of them, and instinctively I was on my guard.

As she spoke to Mallory, she raised her hand and brushed back a strand of hair from her face. The gesture was familiar to me because Edward did the same thing often. This simple movement triggered my memory because her hair was exactly the same shade of bronze. I remembered Edward telling me the story of his mother, Elizabeth.

I could see the resemblance now; her face was familiar because I had spent ages of time watching her son's face, and recording every detail with disturbing obsession.

Then I was horrified.

Could this steely, unbending woman possibly be Edward's mother. My throat went dry. "Are you Edward's mother?" I blurted, before I could lose my nerve. _Coward_, I thought viciously as my voice cracked on the last syllable.

Elizabeth turned, and her eyes pierced me. I couldn't move a muscle. I felt self-consciousness creeping up on me, as she continued to watch me. I couldn't take it, and tore my watering eyes away. "It's rude to stare," I mumbled.

"Yes," she said at last, her voice was subdued, and quite gentle. "Edward is my son." Her voice hardened as she said that. An unpleasant tone crept into her speech that I could not identify. "This is why I have come, and why I requested to handle this case." Confused, I stared at her.

"It too me a long time to convince the higher-ups, but they've agreed at last." What on earth was she talking about? The look she was giving me made me think that she expected me to fall down on my knees and thank her, for what I had no clue. But a small, meek hope was growing like a plant in my chest.

"I have a propostion for you."

**Okay. About Elizabeth:**

**Yes, I know, it is cliché to have Bella meet Elizabeth when she dies, but it just plain makes sense to me. Who else would she meet? I did try to make her as original as possible. She does seem kind of unpleasant here, but she is good. She loves Edward, and wants him to be happy, but he's pretty much the only thing she cares about. I thought this personality would fit in with how she took care of him, even when she had the influenza, and told Carlisle that he had to do everything he could and save Edward. **

**Bye for now!! **


	4. AN

**GRRR!! You people are so awful in the nicest way!! The honest truth is, that I wasn't planning on finishing this story. I just couldn't do it. This story happened kind of the opposite way Haunted Midnight happened; I knew the plot, but I kept getting stuck on certain passages, and over the summer, I suffered a bout of extreme insecurity. Whenever I tried to write, I just kept thinking, **_**This sucks! No one wants to read this!**_ **So I just happened to check reviews on this story just now. I feel **_**really**_** bad, and I want to at least finish this story, just to stop feeling guilty. I'll do my best, okay? I'll at least try and finish the story, even if the writing isn't spectacular. That way, you'll at least know how it ends. **

**Updating (hopefully) soon,**

**AsherRose, back in action.**


	5. Chapter 5

**I checked to see if my A/N had been posted, and I saw the reviews and just had to start the new chapter! Thank you so, so much, EJ 12212012, cutecoolchicgirl, mno44, the saga lover, Wings Dipped in Silver, and everyone else who reviewed while I won hiatus. Your support is VERY appreciated. **

**P.S. Rereading my last chapter, I noticed that there was one part I was not very clear on. "She looked just like anyone I might see driving down the street.." When I say at home, I mean on Earth in the time after she was a ghost, because obviously they didn't have cars (or women in designer suits) when Bella was alive.**

My heart was starting to pound, as if my subconscious knew what was coming. But my voice did not shake or crack as I asked her "What 'proposition' might this be?" I sounded quite calm; but unlooked for hope was rising in me.

"You. Go back to Earth." Her sentences were sharp and clipped. Thinking back, I her words contained a hidden edge that was barely noticeable. Sorrow? Bitterness? I could never say. But at the moment, I really couldn't care about anything but this "proposition". _Go back…._ I had never thought to hope for this, or anything, really. My situation had seemed entirely bleak. Elizabeth's proposal made no sense whatsoever. Could they really send me back? Were they allowed to? I didn't dare ask, too afraid she would take it away.

While this was going on in my stunned mind, Elizabeth and Mallory were growing a wee bit impatient.

"Well, _will_ you or _won't_ you?" Mallory demanded nastily of me. I looked at her totally bewildered, having somehow forgotten about her existence while trying to understand all of this. She hissed with irritation, and began to pace like a caged animal, muttering in what was definitely not English. I'm not sure what she said, but I'd wager it wasn't a compliment.

"If you don't want to.." Elizabeth said dangerously, letting her voice trail away. My staggered brain managed to comprehend that this miraculous opportunity might be slipping away from my fingerprints, and I made a snap decision. There was no need for thought anyway.

"No, no, of course I do!" My voice was panicked- the words came out somewhat garbled in my rush. "Of course I do." I repeated, trying to regain my nonchalance, but I was pretty sure that impression was, by now, dead and buried.

Elizabeth smiled triumphantly, and I had a sense that I had just been manipulated into a trap. I shook of the feeling quickly. Whatever her angle was, I didn't care. I was going to see Edward, and that was all that mattered. Even just a moment would be enough. Then I could be happy, or as happy as I ever could be away from him. I had already decided that I didn't like Elizabeth. I might feel a little remorseful for judging her personality so quickly, except she had made it quite clear that she felt exactly the same about me.

I shoved these thoughts away, and asked exuberantly when I would leave. She stared coolly down her long nose at me, and gave me the bad news: Mallory the Malevolent would be accompanying me. Apparently, she didn't know either, and was just as enthusiastic about the partnership as I was.

"What!" She shrieked, and began swearing violently.

Elizabeth stared her down. One thing I will say about her is she has nerves of steel. And Mallory does, too, apparently, because I think anyone else would have fled before the look Elizabeth gave her. It must have been quite a sight to see, the two strangers looking like they might start ripping each others' throats out, and me, shrinking back from the both of them.

It took several long minutes, but eventually Mallory dropped her eyes. A surrender. Elizabeth gave a victorious smile, then turned back to address me.

"You leave," she checked her watch, "immediately." She turned to pick up her briefcase, still talking. "You will be transported Forks, Washington. Appropriate lodgings have been found for the both of you there. A colleague is waiting for you there. As you are not familiar with Earth conduct in the present time, she can give you guidance in such matters. The-"

I interrupted, which was probably not the wisest thing I have ever done, because it seemed waiting for her to pause would not work. "Who is doing this?" I asked. "And, most of all, _why?_"

For a moment, it seemed like she truly might answer me. But then she turned away again. "It is not for you to know. Just be grateful-"

"Oh, I am-" I inserted quickly.

She turned on me, daring me to speak. I didn't dare. "Just be grateful," she repeated emphatically. Then she turned away, with Mallory, and both of them departed. I stood, shocked and frightened and excited and hopeful. Then the transportation began.

I felt.. Wonderful. Like cool rain after a drought, I was revitalized. My blood turned to electricity in my veins, stinging, burning, but wonderfully rejuvenated. I could feel pulsing energy, ebbing and flowing like the tides.

It burned, brighter and hotter. The invigorating feeling left, and I felt stabs of fear. Then, rising up inside of me, I felt a tremendous wave of energy. It grew, threatening to encompass me. I closed my eyes, trying to force back terror.

The wave swelled suddenly, and my eyes snapped open. All I could feel was pure and absolute terror, the fear of a wild animal that knows its death is coming. I would drown, I was certain. I hopeless as it was, I ran.

It didn't matter.

The wave rushed up, following me. I was hunted, and fear gave my feet wings. But there was no place to run.

I screamed as the swell engulfed me. The sound was lost as tremendous force hit me, knocking the wind out of me. I lay on the ground, as the wave pulverized me, battering me into submission. I opened my mouth to scream again, and the energy flooded my mouth. It was white-hot, and burned my throat on the way down. It tasted metallic and bitter. I could feel it in my stomach, like acid.

The only thing I could do was curl up in a ball, and wait for it to end.

It was the oddest thing I've ever felt. I was scared, but a tiny part of me was excited, thrilled. The burning energy touched my skin, my hair, my eyes. It was so cleansing it was almost gratifying. It didn't seem to be harming me, anyway.

I could hear the rush and pulse of the wave, lifting me up and carrying me at a frightening speed. It slowed down suddenly, and the burning to turned to a gentle heat that caressed my skin. I opened my eyes, and I seemed to be suspended in amber liquid, though I wasn't wet. Around me raged the wave, though it never touched me. It was calm and quiet here, like the eye of a hurricane.

I heard a thud then. I froze. The sound was familiar, too much so. I knew this sound, and I heard several more exactly like it. The thuds took on a jagged, staccato beat, rising in speed. It had been ages since I heard this sound, much less from my own chest.

A beating heart.

The heartbeats rose to a crescendo, and I blacked out.

**There! I feel so proud of myself! Now, as it is 10:30, I really should go to bed.. Goodnight, thank you!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hello! How's it going? I'm going to really have fun with these next few chapters… I hope you like them.**

I felt numb. My skin was hot, which contrasted with the cold floor I was lying on. The sensations overloaded my nerves, which hadn't been used in over a century. For the longest time, I felt nothing until I slowly adjusted to the new feelings.

I tried to stand, but my legs wobbled and I fell. I banged my knee on the way down, and the small pain caused a giant shockwave in the nerves in my new body. I had to curl into a ball on the floor to keep from shrieking out loud. Like everything around me, it was intensified by a hundred. The light filtering through my eyelids was blinding. My harsh breathing sounded like explosions.

Eventually, I stretched out my stiff limbs. Grabbing on to the edge of a table, I hauled myself up. It felt nearly impossible, but somehow I managed. I could only see through narrowed eyes, but it resembled my old friend Ella's house.

_Ella.. _I felt instantly guilty. I had never spared a thought for my old friend while I was- well, wherever I was. Where was she now? I guessed that I was in the "lodgings" Elizabeth had mentioned. And where was Mallory? And where was the colleague Elizabeth wanted me to meet?

Slowly I turned, and nearly shrieked in surprise. I _saw_ myself in the mirror, my old, human face. I could have stared forever. Memories swam in my head, taking me back two hundred years to a different time and place.

_I was standing stock still, listening to y friend's chatter about the goings-on in our tiny town of Forks. As always, any story worth interest was clearly only a nasty rumor made by our local gossips. These popped up quite a bit; Forks was so boring that its townspeople had to make up tales about each other. _

_Sophie was braiding my hair. My eyes drifted over to the mirror, and the two young women inside the copper frame. Sophie, my best friend, small, pale and freckled, too shy for her dark red hair. And me, almost four inches taller, dark hair, dark eyes, and as pale as Sophie._

That picture stayed inside my head as I gazed into the mirror. It was my old face, human and solid and very real. I cupped my face in my hands, and then I felt a burning sensation in my eyes. I closed them tightly, and a tiny drop of water squeezed out of the corner of my right eye. What on earth-

Oh, right.

I was crying. I sniffled a bit, and brushed away my tear. How amazing. I had forgotten what being human felt like. I looked at my reflection again. I was wearing my white dress, made for me by my friend. I seem to recall that it was the dress I was buried. I shuddered. Ugh.

A tiny noise behind me made me jump. I turned, thinking it was Mallory. For a moment I thought it had been my in my head (or maybe the house was haunted- ha, ha) but then I looked down, and saw a cat. A cat? Why a _cat_? I absently sat and petted it. I checked quickly under its tail; it was a girl. She whined and crawled under the table. I followed it awkwardly.

"Aw, come here, kitty-kitty," I cooed. It was a very cute cat, white with coppery-brown splotches, and yellowed eyes. "You're a cutie, aren't you?" She stared at me, and if a cat could look scandalized, she did. Then to my very great surprise, she responded.

"Excuse me?" She asked politely. I jerked back with a shriek. While I was quite aware that the world had changed since I was alive, I was fairly sure that Edward would have mentioned if cats had learned how to talk. I scrambled back still screaming, and bumped my head against the table.

"Owww," I moaned.

The cat blinked at me, looking affronted. "Really," she asked, " is that any way to talk to your mother?"

**Ha ha. These are really fun to write. Thanks to my cat, Edward (yes, he's named for the vampire) who is sitting on my lap as I type. Thank you for reviewing, and I'm really sorry the chapter is so short, but that was seemed like an excellent place to end for now.**

**Oh, and Happy Thanksgiving! **


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